To Hell and Back
by D3m0nDarks
Summary: "You've got some explaining to do, pal," Lance hissed, narrowing his eyes, "what am I doing here? What happened to the Galra that kidnapped me? Where am I?" Keith let out a sigh, closing his eyes for a moment before opening them once again to look at Lance. "You're in the Underworld. As for the Galra, he's a friend of mine. I was the one that kidnapped you." Hades & Persephone AU
1. Vanishing

"It's official. I'm in Hell."

Lance let out a huff as he slumped against one of the many seats lining the walls of the grand ballroom.

Pidge let out a chuckle from beside him. "You say that every year, quit being so dramatic. Not many people call the annual Gathering of the Gods 'boring'."

"And every year is worse than the last!" He let out a sigh before continuing. "I wish Hunk was here with us. Stupid 'no half-gods' rule."

"What, you want him to suffer with you?"

"Yes!"

The forest god laughed at his response. "Maybe you can convince Shiro to try and talk to the council about it. I'm sure Allura and Coran would be on your side."

"Shiro's busy enough as is, he already has to deal with all these rumors about the Galra starting to revolt." He said, turning a glare towards one of the furry purple gods that was busy laughing at something it's companion had said.

"I'm sure they're just that," Pidge assured, "rumors. You know how people are."

Lance finally pulled his gaze away from the Galra to gaze at the floor. "I hope so, for everyone's sake."

A moment of silence passed between them before Lance felt an elbow jab into side. "Don't look now, but I think someone's had their eye on you for the past hour or so."

Lance's head snapped up, frantically scanning the room. "Where?"

"Idiot!" Pidge hissed, jabbing him again, causing Lance to let out a low whine, "I said 'don't look now', that means be subtle!"

"Sorry…" He slumped his shoulders and went back to scanning the crowd, calmer this time.

"He's on the left by the door, leaning against the wall with a glass of… whatever that is. Let's just hope Dionysus didn't spike everything again… Black tux, red tie, black mullet-"

"Wait a second, you mean _Keith_!?" Lance snapped his head to the left and sure enough, there stood the God of the Underworld himself, just as Pidge had described.

"I don't know, I guess?" Pidge responded with a shrug. "You know him?"

"Unfortunately. He's Shiro's half-brother but he rarely ever comes to the gatherings, he's too busy ruling the Underworld. I'm pretty sure he's half Galra on his mother's side; acts like one too, the guy's a total jerk!"

"How so?"

"We've only talked a few times, but even so, last time he didn't even remember who I was!"

Pidge gave a low whistle. "That must have been tough for ya."

"I don't need your sass, Pidge, I'm being serious! Who forgets people that easily!?"

"Maybe he's got a memory problem or something. Relax, it was just one time."

"But still!" Lance crossed his arms with an angry huff. "The guy acts like-... I dunno, like he's-..."

"Emotionally constipated?"

"Exactly!"

Pidge hummed in thought. "I wonder why he's been staring at you so much…?"

Lance turned to look one more time, only to see Keith just barely looking away, turning his glare to something on the other side of the room. "Probably trying to pick a fight or something."

"Or maybe he likes you!" The other god teased, a shit-eating grin spreading across their face.

The older god blanched. "Oh my god, Pidge, don't even joke about that. Besides, I'm pretty sure the guy hates my guts."

"If you say so."

"What do you mean by that!?" Lance demanded.

"I mean that you're over-dramatic and probably just reading too much into the situation, as always," Pidge responded with a shrug. "Why would he hate you if he didn't even remember you?"

"He probably forgot about me _because_ he hates me or something, I dunno!"

"That doesn't make any sense," Pidge pointed out, shaking their head. "But anyways, I'm gonna go get some punch. You want some?"

"No thanks," Lance responded, " I think I'm gonna go for a walk outside and get some fresh air. It's too stuffy in here."

"Suit yourself." With that, Pidge stood and disappeared into the crowd.

Lance stood as well, giving himself a second to stretch before heading outside, quietly thankful Keith didn't seem to move from his spot to try and talk to him.

As soon as he was outside, he instantly felt better. As much as he loved people (growing up the son of Demeter herself along with having 4 siblings did that to you), he had never been a fan of huge crowds. It was nice talking to a few people, but having that many at once could get suffocating.

There were a few people meandering about outside, but this year's Gathering of the Gods was being held in his hometown of Altea, so he knew the area pretty well, and knew exactly where to go to get some solitude.

Lance headed into a small forest, emerging only a couple minutes later into a small clearing with a lake on the other side.

It was times like these Lance truly loved being the god of Spring. The season followed him wherever he went, and as he gazed out across the clearing, full of fresh green grass and flowers just starting to close their petals in the sunset and fireflies dancing with their reflections across the lake, he knew it was a sight he'd never tire of.

But as he approached the lake, choosing to settle himself under a gaping willow tree, he swore for a moment he felt like he was being watched. He briefly wondered if somehow it was Keith again and he chanced a look around, seeing nothing but the clearing and the forest behind him. The sensation was gone as soon as it came and in the end, he decided to brush it off as nothing more than paranoia.

He sat under the willow tree for what felt like hours as he enjoyed the breeze and the changing colors of the sky. Once the sun had fully set, he stood up once more and was about to head back before people began to worry when he heard the sound of horse hooves and wheels approaching.

He turned around and sure enough, heading straight for him was a small red chariot pulled by a single black steed with matching red eyes that almost seemed to eerily glow in the dark. As soon as it was close enough, it pulled to a stop and from the chariot stepped a tall figure cloaked in a dark hooded robe. At the height they stood at, the person was clearly a Galra.

Alarms started going off in Lance's head and he instantly knew this couldn't be anything good.

The hooded figure approached him, his face unidentifiable in the dark. "I'm sorry about this," they said in a voice Lance couldn't recognize, and before he had time to turn and run, something struck him across the back of the head.

The last thing he registered was falling ungracefully into someone's awaiting arms as everything went black.


	2. Questions

The first thing Lance was greeted with upon awaking was a splitting headache.

He slowly willed himself to sit up, rubbing at the spot where it stung in a futile attempt to soothe the pain, but eventually gave up, suddenly becoming more interested in his surroundings.

He was seated on a bed covered in red silk. Most of the room seemed to be red, in fact. Whoever had designed it seemed to like the color a little too much.

There was an open door to the left that led to a connected bathroom and across from the bed stood a pair of double doors that was most likely a closet. There were a couple of reading chairs to the right, a coffee table, and two tall bookcases filled to the brim with stories. There were no windows but a small chandelier hung from the ceiling, glowing dimly, as well as a lamp seated on a nightstand next to the bed. Overall, the room was bigger than any bedroom ever needed to be.

Slowly Lance swung his legs over the side of the bed and stood up, grimacing slightly upon noticing he was still in the same tux he had worn last night. Or at least he hoped it was just last night considering there was no way of knowing how long he had been unconscious.

He quickly slipped his cell phone out of his pocket, unsurprised to see there was no service before pocketing it again and deciding to find out where exactly he was.

Next to the reading chairs stood a pair of double doors that Lance assumed was his way out. He pushed on them, surprised to find they were lighter than they looked, and was greeted with a long hallway on the other side. To his right were just more doors, but to the left was a double grand staircase leading down into a grand foyer.

And further down the hall Lance saw a familiar mullet heading in the opposite direction of him.

"Hey!" He snapped, breaking into a run to catch up, and as the figure turned around, sure enough, there stood Keith, in a black t-shirt and form-fitting jeans. Lance had to admit, it was strange seeing the man out of formal attire.

"You're awake-" The fellow god began, but was cut off as Lance grabbed him by the front of the shirt.

"You've got some explaining to do, pal," Lance hissed, narrowing his eyes, "what am I doing here? What happened to the Galra that kidnapped me? Where am I?"

Keith let out a sigh, closing his eyes for a moment before opening them once again to look at Lance. "You're in the Underworld. As for the Galra, he's a friend of mine. I was the one that kidnapped you."

"What do you mean you _kidnapped_ me!?"

"Exactly what it sounds like." Keith replied, his voice monotone.

"Alright then, _why_ did you kidnap me?" Lance demanded, infuriated.

The other god pursed his lips as he stared back at Lance. "I can't tell you that."

Lance grabbed another fistful of Keith's shirt and pushed him up against the nearest wall. "What the quiznack is that supposed to mean!?"

"It means what I said," Keith hissed back, "I can't tell you why. Not right now. Believe me, I would if I could, but I have my reasons."

"Ugh!" The taller male shouted, letting go of Keith to throw his hands up in the air, "I can't believe you! I knew there was a reason I couldn't stand you, you're impossible!"

Lance could have sworn he saw a brief flash of hurt cross Keith's face but it was gone as quickly as it had come.

"I'm not sure how long you'll be here," Keith continued as if Lance's outburst had never happened, "so make yourself comfortable. But don't wander too far from the house, it's easy to get lost. And whatever you do, don't eat the food unless Ulaz or I give it to you." And before Lance could question him, Keith turned and continued back the way he had previously been headed.

"Jerk," Lance muttered under his breath as he watched Keith turn a corner and disappear. "And who the heck is Ulaz?"

"That would be me." Lance whipped around in a flash, not having heard anyone come up. Before him stood a Galra with light grayish-purple skin in a skin tight purple body suit.

"Wait a second," Lance said suspiciously, recognizing the voice, "you're the Galra from last night!"

"Indeed," he replied, a frown etched onto his face, "I'm very sorry about that, but please believe me when I tell you we had no choice. I highly doubt you would have come with us had we simply asked and could not provide you with a reason as to why."

"Of course I wouldn't! And I doubt you'd be willing to tell me why I'm here, right?"

Ulax solemnly shook his head. "I'm afraid I'm not at liberty to say. Just know that Keith has the best of intentions."

"And you can't even say why it's such a secret?"

"Correct."

Lance let out a sigh. "Figures... But what did he mean about not eating the food unless you or he gives it to me?"

"The food of the Underworld is special," Ulaz began, "if you take so much as one bite of it you'll be bound to this place, and should you stay away for too long you would eventually die. That is why I will provide you with whatever you need from the surface world."

"I guess I should thank you then, huh."

Ulaz gave the boy a smile. "There is no need. If there's anything else you need please feel free to let me know."

Lance returned the smile, deciding Ulaz seemed nice enough, especially considering he was a Galra, who were known for their hostility. "Thank you, I will."

With that, Ulaz gave him a slight bow and began to walk away, leaving Lance by himself once more.

* * *

"Alright, thanks anyways," was the last thing Pidge heard Shiro say before he hung up the phone and let out a sigh. "That's the last one. I can't think of anyone else who was at the party that might have seen something. All that's left is to wait for those who didn't answer to call back."

"What about Keith?" Pidge asked from where they sat between Hunk and Demeter, hand on Lance's weeping mother's back.

"Keith?" Shiro questioned, eyebrows drawing together in confusion. "If I remember correctly he left early, said something about having some business to attend to."

"It seemed like Keith had his eye on Lance the whole night, maybe he saw something?"

Shiro nodded. "Thanks Pidge, I'll check in on him," he said before turning back to Demeter. "Don't worry Mrs. McClain, I'll find your son if it's the last thing I do."

Just then Shiro's phone began to ring.

"Who is it?" Hunk asked eagerly.

Shiro looked at the screen. "It says it's from Sendak," he replied before pressing the accept call button. "Hello?"

"Hello Shiro," the deep voice on the other side greeted, a smirk evident in it's voice, "I believe I have some information that may interest you."


	3. Secrets

After heading back to the room he woke up in and changing into something a bit more comfortable, Lance decided it was time to explore the castle a bit.

Just beneath the double grand staircase was a grand ballroom, and to the right of that, a large kitchen with a chef hard at work that Lance decided not to bother. There was also a pantry, a dining hall, a study, a rather impressive library, a recreation room (that didn't even have a tv or video games, Lance was appalled), a wine cellar, an art studio that didn't seem to have been used for a long time, and even a small observatory that only seemed to look up gray clouds. Regardless, it was full of books and photographs of the night sky. That room was probably Lance's favorite.

The god decided not to explore the upstairs too much, not wanting to intrude.

Finally, he made it outside. He exited through the grand foyer into the front yard. In front of him stood a large garden. Or, that's what it looked like it was supposed to be, at least. Everything but the trees were either dead or wilted. The leaves on the trees were a strange purplish gray. Everything was so… dull The sight made Lance's heart sink.

He knelt down and reached a hand out, brushing the petals of the closest flower, what looked like it was supposed to be a rose, and allowed his magic to flow through his fingertips and into the petals. WIthin seconds the flower began to brighten and straighten as is was brought back to life in a beautiful red hue. Satisfied, Lance stood up and admired his work for a second before continuing on with his exploration.

His curiosity led him around to the back yard where he found the stables. There only seemed to be two horses, neither of which had any name plaques. There was the black horse with red eyes from last night along with a black and white pinto.

Tentatively, he reached out, giving the pinto a few pats, which, thankfully, the beast seemed to like.

"I could show you around wherever you haven't been if you'd like."

Lance started, accidentally spooking the horse a bit, as he turned to find Ulaz standing behind him once more. "You really need to stop sneaking up on me!"

Ulaz gave a small chuckle. "My apologies. Would you like a tour guide?"

"Uh, sure. I've already explored most of the house, just not the upstairs." Lance hesitantly agreed.

"Then follow me, we'll start there. And I'm sure Keith would be happy to show you around if you wish to explore farther from the house." The Galra declared before walking off, not waiting for Lance to follow.

* * *

If there was one thing Keith hated, it was lying to Shiro.

"Sorry, I haven't seen him since the party."

They were currently wandering around aimlessly in the gardens just in front of the mansion. He would have said it was a nice day, but technically there was no weather in the Underworld and it looked just as bleak and dreary as any other day. The sky was gray, a pack of tevilags circled above, and if you listened closely you could hear the wails of the damned waiting to cross the Styx.

Shiro had decided to pay a sudden visit, asking about Lance. As soon as Keith had heard someone at the door he had commanded Ulaz to keep the aforementioned god busy, and far away from them. Regardless, he was nervous Shiro suspected something, and was eager to get his brother to leave as quickly as possible.

Shiro gave him an almost knowing look. "You're sure? I got a call from Sendak, he said he saw you were with Lance after you both left."

Keith tensed at that. "I'm sure," he assured, "I saw him in a small clearing by a lake just beyond the woods, but I didn't talk to him. That's when Ulaz came to pick me up." That part at least was true.

Shiro hummed in thought. "If there was a lake there's a chance I could get Lance's uncle Poseidon to talk to the fish for me. They might have seen something."

"Yeah… Good idea." Keith replied, hesitantly.

"Alright, thank you, you've been a huge help. If you hear or see anything else, please let me know. Everyone's worried sick."

"I will," Keith lied.

"Thanks. It means a lot. I've got a lot going on right now, having to deal with the rumors about Zarkon and everything."

"Right, how's that going?" Keith asked just to try and be polite, feeling bad for being the reason for his brother's current stressful situation, "Any truth to the rumors?"

Shiro let out a heavy sigh. "It's hard to say. Everyone's talking about how the Galra are planning on enslaving humans or something, but Zarkon hasn't said anything about them. I'm a little concerned he hasn't said anything to deny the rumors, but perhaps he just doesn't want to fuel the fire or anything."

"He's the leader of the Galra, he's already in the middle of it. If they're not true then just say so, it's better than staying silent," Keith huffed.

"I agree," Shiro said with a nod, "but it's hard to know what that guy's thinking. I'm still willing to give him the benefit of the doubt."

"You're too nice for your own good."

Shiro laughed at that. "I'll take that as a compliment. I'm the god of justice after all, I'm not going to take action without any certain proof."

Keith frowned. "All of humankind is at risk, Shiro. This isn't something you can just ignore until it's too late."

The older god hummed in thought. "Perhaps you're right. I'll talk to Zarkon tomorrow and demand some answers."

As Keith looked up he realized they had already circled around and were back in front of the mansion once more.

"Well, I'll get out of your hair now. I'm sure you were probably busy enough without me dropping in unannounced."

"You'd be surprised how lively things can be down here." Keith assured.

"Was that a joke?"

Keith cracked a small smile, causing Shiro to laugh.

"That was a good one. Anyways, I'll see you later?" Shiro opened his arms to give Keith a hug.

The younger brother hugged back. "Yeah." He was tempted to tell Shiro he hoped he found Lance, but that would just be another lie. "Good luck. With everything."

"Thanks. I'll need it," Shiro said with a sad smile before turning to leave, but not before something caught his eye.

In the garden full of dead and wilted flowers, there stood a single red rose in full bloom.


	4. Homesick

Lance currently found himself being led around the Underworld by none other than Keith. In the end his curiosity had gotten the better of him and he had given in to asking to be shown around. That, and it would be nice to know the area in case he ever attempted to escape; a thought he was still mulling over.

"And this is the river Styx. It's the border between the Underworld and Earth. On the other side stands the gates, or the portal, back to your world." Keith noticed Lance eyeing the other side eagerly. "I wouldn't if I were you," he warned, "it's impossible to swim to the other side without drowning, no matter how good of a swimmer you are. And the ferryman, Charon, only responds to me. Besides, even if you do manage to get across, the gates are guarded by Cerberus and Orthrus."

"Orthrus?" Lance questioned.

"Cerberus's lesser known two-headed brother. Although he's more of a lap dog than a guard dog, but it's still not fun getting tackled by a three-hundred pound beast." Something told Lance Keith knew that fact from experience. He decided to take his word for it.

"I think your dog needs to go on a diet."

Keith gave what Lance had learned was a huff of amusement. "He's the smaller of the two, but still around the size of a bear. Cerberus, however, is about the size of a house."

"Yeesh. And I thought Hunk's golden was big…" At the thought of his best friend, Lance's face fell. The poor guy was probably worried sick. Not to mention his mother and Pidge.

Now that he thought about it, Pidge's brother was the god of Summer, was that just a coincidence that two of the Horae, the gods of seasons, had vanished? All that was left were the two Galra Horae, Antok of Autumn, and Sendak of Winter.

"Hey, do you know what happened to Matt, the god of Summer? He suddenly disappeared a couple months ago."

Keith shook his head. "Sorry, but no. Most of my time is spent here, and as far as I'm aware he hasn't been here."

"Oh…" Lance replied, looking down towards the ground.

Keith eyed him and seemed to hesitate before speaking up once again. "I'm sure he's probably safe. I wouldn't be surprised if he was in a similar situation as you."

"That doesn't exactly comfort me."

The half-Galra hummed in response. "But you're safe, aren't you?"

"That's true," Lance admitted, looking up to gaze at the Styx once more, "and I'm curious why he'd be in a similar situation, but I suppose you can't exactly tell me."

Keith's silence served as answer enough.

A moment of quiet passed between them before Lance spoke up again. "Don't you ever get tired of being down here?"

Keith looked at him in surprise. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, everything's so… dark and dreary. Don't you miss the sun? And the flowers, and the singing of the birds, and the rain?"

"You're homesick," the shorter one concluded with a frown.

Lance sighed and sat down, leaning back on his hands. "I know I've only been gone a day or so but… I'm the god of Spring, I've always been surrounded by warm weather and bright colors. But suddenly having everything you've known your whole life get taken away from you… It makes you realize how much you've taken it for granted."

Keith took a seat next to Lance. "I can't say I miss what I've never known," he began, "I've spent almost my entire life living here. Of course I've experienced those things on occasion when I've visited Earth, but for the most part this world has been my home. If I were to be stuck on Earth, there are plenty of things about this world I would miss." He gestured to the Styx. "The sound of the river, the sefila cries at night, even the gray of the storm clouds have always been a constant. It doesn't really matter where you live, bright or dull, there's always beauty in familiarity. If you end up staying here long enough you might find this place grow on you."

"I suppose," Lance agreed hesitantly, "I just hope I don't have to stay here that long."

"For your sake, I hope the same."

They continued to sit in silence for a while longer before Keith stood up again. "It's starting to get late. We should probably start to head back."

"Alright." With that, Lance stood and followed the half-Galra back to the mansion.

They entered through the back door, having come from that direction, when Lance paused. "There's something I wanted to ask you about. In the observatory, can you ever actually see the sky?"

"Only occasionally," Keith replied, turning to face the fellow god, "the night of October thirty-first, or Halloween, as you call it, is the day our realm and your realm are side by side and share the same sky. It's strongest at night, and so it's the only time of the year we actually have any sort of weather."

"Huh," Lance said thoughtfully, "I never would have guessed. So can demons actually cross over when that happens?"

"It's possible, but very rare. It used to happen constantly many centuries ago, but ever since I started ruling everything's been too afraid to even try it. If one does manage to cross over, we find it and eliminate it."

"Wow, that's pretty impressive," Lance had to admit, "though being feared so much doesn't sound so pleasant."

Keith gave a shrug in response. "You get used to it."

A sudden thought crossed Lance's head. "If people are so scared of you, how do you make any friends?"

"I don't," Keith replied simply, "Shiro and Ulaz are the only friends I've ever really had. If you can count Shiro, that is, since he's my brother."

"That's… sad." Lance frowned. He almost felt bad for the guy.

Keith, however, didn't seem that broken up over it. "It doesn't really bother me. It's always been like this."

"Still," Lance couldn't help but say, "friends are nice to have. You should try making some. And maybe try not to kidnap them, that's not usually the best way to get people to like you."

The other god rolled his eyes, crossing his arms. "I told you I have my reasons-" just then he was interrupted by the sound of Lance's stomach growling. The taller boy gave him a sheepish look. "Alright, come on, let's find you something to eat."

* * *

Shiro paced the room back and forth, eagerly waiting for Poseidon to call back with any sort of information. When the call finally arrived he nearly lunged for the phone, picking up on the first ring. "What did you find out?"

"Keith's story checks out," Poseidon told him, "there was a single set of chariot marks, but nothing else. No signs of a struggle or anything."

"And the fish?"

There was a long pause on the other end of the line. "Dead."

"What do you mean 'dead'?" Shiro demanded, narrowing his eyes.

Poseidon sighed. "I mean the fish were dead. Every single one of them. "

"So whoever took Lance knew the fish could be used as witnesses." Shiro concluded. "There's something bigger going on here, I know it. And something tells me Keith's hiding something."

"And there's one more thing… Lance must be somewhere where his powers are being blocked."

"What makes you say that?"

"All over the city flowers are dying. Altea's eternal Spring has ended."

* * *

 **Hey guys, D3m0nDarks here, I never really left a note on this story yet and wanted to say sorry about that. I've also posted it on Ao3 and that's my main source of readers, on here I don't have that many. But I wanted to say sorry if Keith seems a bit OOC in this chapter, I originally wrote it as Ulaz then decided Keith and Lance needed more bonding moments ;) by the way, I'm updating this every sunday!**

 **Also, feel free to follow me on tumblr at give-it-a-klance!**

 **Thanks for reading everyone! And please leave a review if you'd like, your comments keep me going!**


	5. Intrusion

"Get off the pool table."

Lance turned his head to the side, seeing Keith standing in the doorway to the recreation room, arms crossed and looking just as pissed as usual. Then, Lance's gaze drifted to behind the boy, which stood... was that-…?

"What the cheese!?" Lance shouted, launching into a sitting position as his brain registered what he was seeing, "is that a lion!?"

Keith just raised an eyebrow at the other's outburst as the lion that stood behind him padded into the room. "What else would it be?"

Lance crossed his legs where he sat on the pool table, hoping the thing kept it's distance from him. Thankfully, it didn't seem to want to leave Keith's side. "Alright, fine, _why_ do you have a _lion_!?"

Keith gave him a confused look, looking for all the world like he couldn't fathom why there would be anything wrong with the idea. "Why wouldn't I?"

Lance groaned, rubbing at his face with the palms of his hands. "You know what, forget I even asked. I don't wanna know."

Keith simply shrugged in response before speaking up once again. "If you're done freaking out about Red, can you please get off the pool table?"

Lance huffed in annoyance but complied.

"Thank you," Keith grunted, "what were you doing lying on the pool table to begin with?"

"Being bored. There's nothing to do around here besides play billiards, and I'm sick of that already."

"You could always read, I do have an entire library full of books." Keith suggested, shifting his weight from one foot to the other, arms still crossed.

Lance whined and began to protest. "But reading's also boring!"

The look that crossed Keith's face at that moment was by far better than any had ever seen. One would think Lance had just insulted Keith's mother by how offended he looked and Lance couldn't help but bark out a laugh. "Oh my gods, you're a nerd!"

Keith began to blush and even Lance had to admit, the pink staining the boy's cheeks was somewhat endearing. Not that he'd ever admit that out loud.

"I am not!" He hissed back.

"Are too! And no offense, but your entertainment room isn't very entertaining. There's not even a TV!"

The pink faded from Keith's face and was replaced with a look of confusion once more. "'TV'?"

Lance narrowed his eyes in suspicion. " _Please_ tell me you know what a TV is." Keith shook his head and Lance's jaw nearly dropped to the floor right then and there. "Jeez, you really do live under a rock."

"I live under a roof," Keith said slowly, voice just as full of confusion as his face.

Lance simply leaned against the pool table, holding his head in his hands. He couldn't deal with this.

"Alright," Lance said, looking up again, voice full of determination, "you're rich, right? Tell Ulaz or whoever to go to Earth and buy two 3DS's and Pokemon Sun and Pokemon Moon. I'm gonna teach you how to have fun."

* * *

Several hours later found Lance and Keith interlocked in a Pokemon battle, each down to just their starter Pokemon. Somehow in that time Lance had managed to coax Keith into sitting on the edge of the pool table with him, Red curled up asleep next to where their legs dangled in the air.

Keith had his Torracat named after Red, while Lance, partially to go along with the theme, partially to mock Keith's lack of creativeness, had decided to name his Brionne "Blue".

It was only a matter of time before Lance's Water Gun beat Keith's fire type. "Yes!" Lance shouted, throwing his fists in the air as the Torracat fainted.

Out of the corner Lance could see Keith narrow his eyes as his grip on his 3DS tightened when the word "LOSE" popped up above his character on the screen. "Again," he hissed.

"What, you want me kick your butt once more?" He asked with a grin.

"You only barely won! Besides, I was at a type disadvantage!" Keith defended himself bitterly.

"That's what you get for picking a lame starter like Litten!" Lance laughed.

"Litten's not lame, your clown seal is lame!"

Lange gave a dramatic gasp. "You take that back! How dare you insult my precious Blue!"

"Let's go!" Keith demanded once more, "one more time!"

"Talk about a sore loser," the taller god commented with a chuckle, "but fine, I'll kick your butt again!"

"We'll see about that."

Lance set up the next match, choosing to send out his Drowzee, Finger Game, as he had nicknamed it after the animation of it wiggling it's fingers, first once more. Keith decided to switch things up this time and start with Red, who easily beat Lance's Pokemon as Lance let out a curse.

In retaliation Lance sent out Blue, which caused Keith to growl out "oh, no, I'm not lettin' Red go down again," before switching Red out for a Magnemite, unsurprisingly named Silver.

"You need better taste in names," Lance muttered, deciding to try and tough this one out with Blue. However, a single hit of Spark had her knocked out.

"My taste in names is just fine!" Keith defended as Lance sent out his Machop, Macho Man.

The two bickered back and forth before they were finally down to their last pokemon. Keith was stuck with Red while Lance was saddled with his trusty Fearow, Big Birb. But in the end, the avian was no match for Keith's starter and went down with a cry.

"Ugh!" Lance groaned in defeat, "using your Butterfree to spam Sleep Powder should be against the rules!"

"His name is Mothman, and who's the sore loser now?" Keith retorted with a smirk.

"Still you!" The taller god denied, crossing his arms awkwardly, 3DS still in hand.

"Whatever you say." Keith rolled his eyes at Lance's childish response, but couldn't help the smile that spread across his face. Bickering or not, this was the first time he had ever had fun with another person besides Shiro.

And that was when Keith knew this, whatever "this" was, was bad. He was growing attached. Attached to someone who would eventually have to leave.

'He doesn't belong here. He has to go home eventually,' Keith reminded himself. And that's when a single traitorous thought crossed his mind, one that he knew was purely selfish and should never have seen the light of day to begin with.

'Or does he?'


	6. Broken Bonds

Keith groaned and rubbed at his face for what felt like the millionth time. What was wrong with him? Thinking about wanting to keep Lance with him in the Underworld after only a few hours with him? It was absurd.

But he couldn't deny that he had enjoyed spending time with the fellow god. Even their bickering seemed fun to him. Was he seriously just that loney? That he'd instantly grow attached to the first person who came along and made him smile?

No matter how lonely, he couldn't bring himself to do that to Lance. He needed to distance himself from him. Even if it hurt, it was for the best that they didn't grow any closer.

After the thought of keeping Lance with him had crossed his mind Keith quickly made up some excuse to leave. He needed some time to himself to think.

However, fate seemed to have other ideas.

"Hey, Keith? You in here?" Lance asked, poking his head into the library.

Keith lowered his hands to look at the other boy. "What do you want?" He demanded, instantly feeling guilty about his cold tone as Lance flinched slightly, but not being able to bring himself to regret the choice.

"You left pretty suddenly," Lance explained, letting himself in and closing the door gently behind him, "I just wanted to make sure you were alright."

"I'm fine."

"You sure? You know I was just joking about you being a sore loser, right?"

"Yeah, I know," Keith sighed, "I just need to be left alone right now."

Lance made a face of confusion. "Alright… if you say so." With that, he turned to leave, but not before pausing to add, "but if you need me, I'm here."

Keith bit his lip. This kid was too nice for his own good. "Just go already," he hissed, hating the guilty feeling that was clawing at his throat and choking him as he forced the words out. _This is for the best,_ he had to remind himself, _it's better to not grow attached. He'll leave soon and then you can get back to your normal boring lonely life._

"Okay, okay, I'm leaving!" Lance snapped back before muttering, just loud enough for Keith to hear, "no need to get your undies up in a twist, just trying to be nice." And with that, he slammed the door behind him, leaving Keith to himself once more.

The god of the Underworld gave a heavy sigh and plopped down in the nearest chair. What had he just done? He acted like a jerk to Lance just for being nice to him. No wonder he had such trouble making friends if this was how he treated people.

"What am I doing?" He asked himself, hanging his head.

"I was about to ask the same thing."

Keith started at Ulaz's voice, letting out a quiet curse. "You really need to stop doing that."

"My apologies," Ulaz replied, but the slight grin on his face made Keith think he wasn't sorry in the least bit. But then all too quickly the grin was replaced with a frown. "I saw Lance storming off. What did you say to him?"

"I was a jerk to him," Keith grumbled, embarrassed at his own actions, "he was just trying to be nice, but I had to make him hate me."

"And why is that?" Ulaz inquired.

"Because he's _too_ nice. I can't get attached or it'll just hurt more when he leaves. For the first time in longer than I can remember I was actually having fun and smiling." He let out a sigh. "I actually like having him around. I thought about not letting him go back, Ulaz. I can't do that to him."

The Galra hummed in thought. "And why can't you remain friends after he goes home?"

Keith almost laughed at the thought. "I kidnapped him, I highly doubt he'll want anything to do with me as soon as he gets out of here."

"I don't think you give Lance enough credit," the taller one replied, "as soon as you're able to explain to him why you brought him here I'm sure he'll understand."

"But who knows how long that'll take? He'll get sick of me long before then. Just like everyone else."

"I still have yet to grow tired of you, Keith," Ulaz tried to comfort, "and I can't even begin to count how many centuries it's been."

"Yeah, but you've known me since I was a kid," Keith huffed, "it's easier to grow attached to a kid. Not so much a teenager that treats people like crap."

"Then perhaps you should show him some kindness and instead. Give him a chance. Something tells me Lance is different from most people. And you know the saying, it's better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all."

"Who said anything about love?" Keith grumbled, a pink hue overcoming his cheeks.

Ulaz chuckled. "You know what I meant. Just give him a chance. Worst case scenario you two don't end up as friends and you go back to your normal life. You have nothing to lose."

Keith gave a heavy sigh, knowing Ulaz had a point. "Alright, fine. I'll try to make friends with him."

Ulaz gave Keith a warm smile. "Thank you. Now, I believe you have some apologizing to do."

"Yeah, yeah," Keith groaned, standing from where he sat and heading past Ulaz to find his new potential friend.

After searching the mansion for what felt like forever, Keith finally found Lance laying on the floor in the middle of the observatory, staring up at the ceiling, which was covered in an intricate painting of the night sky. There were a couple of tables covered in maps of the stars, similar ones lining the walls, with a large telescope built into the far corner of the room.

"Hey," Keith began, not entirely sure what to say.

Lance gave a quiet grunt in response, but didn't turn to look at him.

Keith stood there awkwardly for several seconds, biting his lip and rubbing his arm - a nervous habit he had - before he decided to bite the bullet and get it over with already.

"I'm sorry," he blurted out, "I was a jerk earlier."

"Yeah, I'd say," Lance huffed, finally sitting up and turning to look at Keith, "what was that about?"

"I was just… I'm not good at keeping friends. I grow attached, they don't." He closed his eyes and took a deep breath before opening them to look at Lance again. "I didn't want to make friends with you knowing you're just going to leave, but…"

"Let me guess, Ulaz talked some sense to you?" Lance concluded for him.

"Yeah."

"Well I'm glad he did," Lance gave Keith a warm smile, "you're pretty fun to hang out with. Just promise me you'll eventually tell me why you kidnapped me, kay?"

Keith couldn't help but smile in response. Perhaps Ulaz was right. Lance _was_ different. "Promise."

"And it better be a good reason too!" The taller once proclaimed as Keith walked over to take a seat beside him.

"It is," Keith assured as he laid down to stare up at the ceiling.

Lance seemed to take the hint and laid back as well. "Does the ceiling have real constellations?" He asked, changing the subject.

"Yeah." Keith reached up to point to one. "Over there's Orion…"

They continued on like that for a while, Keith pointing out all the painted constellations and Lance listening eagerly until the two of them finally grew drowsy and fell into dreamless sleeps.


	7. Nahalluds

Lance and Keith were beginning to grow closer. They had spent a lot of time together lately, mainly playing Pokemon, sometimes simply hanging out reading in the same room (Lance of course would settle for nothing less than comics, much to Keith's horror), and even occasionally racing each other on horseback. The second horse, Lance found out, Keith owned for when Shiro came to visit.

As of now, Lance was currently searching the mansion to find his fellow god.

He had searched all of Keith's usual places; the library, his room, the observatory, the dining hall, even the billiards room - as Lance had helpfully renamed the recreation room since that's mostly what it contained - but to no avail.

Finally he decided to make his way outside, and sure enough, there was Keith in the courtyard, wielding a foil and clad in a full fencing suit.

"You can fence?" Lance asked, impressed, as soon as Keith paused to take a break.

"Yeah, it's something I learned when I was a kid," Keith replied as he yanked off his helmet so he could catch his breath, "were you looking for me?"

Lance gave a small shrug. "I was bored, was curious what you were up to."

Keith gave a small hum in thought. "I was just about done. But there's something I want to show you that I think you might like."

"Someplace you missed on the tour? What a poor tour guide," Lance joked.

The side of Keith's mouth quirked up in amusement. "It's not a "where", it's a "what". You'll see."

Lance waited a moment as Keith stripped of his fencing gear before the fellow god began to head into the woods, beckoning Lance to follow.

The woods got dark quick, and Lance could have sworn he heard a growl or two. He made sure to stick close to Keith, who was navigating through the trees like he knew the place by the back of his hand. And with how long the deity had lived there, Lance didn't doubt that was the case.

They walked for a good ten minutes in solid silence before the god of spring decided to break it. "Are we almost there yet?"

"Yeah, now keep your voice down."

Lance spoke up once more, making sure to keep his voice low as Keith had asked. "You're not going to murder me or something, are you?"

He could practically feel the eye roll coming from Keith. "If I wanted to kill you I would have done so a long time ago. Now shush."

They came to a halt and crouched behind a set of bushes bordering a tiny clearing. The clearing was filled with creatures Lance had never seen before. The creatures seemed to have the skulls of elk as faces, their mouths all slightly ajar, and the rest of their body was simply a black robe that faded into nothingness at the bottom. The eye sockets contained small glowing white orbs that served as eyes. There had to be around 20 of them, all of them looking almost exactly alike, with small differences in horn patterns. At first glance they didn't seem to have any limbs, but upon closer look Lance could sometimes briefly see a black arm or two reach out from the robe, consisting of only two long spindly fingers and a matching thumb.

"What the squid are those?" Lance hissed quietly to Keith.

The other god raised his eyebrow at the other boy's strange wording, but elected to ignore it. "They're called 'nahalluds'. It's 'dullahan' backwards, since they're basically their counterparts. Now follow me, and whatever you do, when one comes up to you, don't move a muscle." And before Lance could protest, Keith was leaving the safety of their bush and approaching the horrifying creatures.

Lance let out a sigh, deciding it was probably safer by Keith's side than alone in one of Hell's dark creepy forests, and began to follow.

The creatures seemed to take notice of them instantly. The group made a series of clicking noises that he assumed was their form of language. They seemed to ignore Keith entirely, and focus all their attention on Lance. That probably wasn't a good sign.

Three of them broke off from the pack, the rest standing - or floating he supposed - quietly and watching as they approached. The creatures seemed to circle Lance, who stood still as if his life depended on it, as they let out a series of clicks and seemed to look him over. Finally, the one in front of him leaned forward and gave Lance a harsh nudge with it's nose, almost knocking the boy over.

The other two began to do the same, but much lighter this time, poking and nudging him all over as they went silent. Lance looked to Keith for help, but the fellow god just stood there with his arms crossed, an amused smirk spread across his face, oblivious to the internal panic attack that was going on inside Lance's head.

Finally, the nudges seemed to stop and the three nahalluds clicked loudly a few times. The pack started to click back just as loud and before he knew what was happening, the three creatures were behind him, pushing him forward towards the rest of the group.

"You can move now," Keith informed him as he followed beside Lance, "congrats, they seem to like you."

"Let's hope they like me as company and not as dinner. And how come you didn't have to get poked?"

Keith let out a quiet chuckle. Lance decided it was a nice sound. "Cuz they recognized me. nahalluds are pack creatures, and once you gain their trust, like you just did, they treat you as one of their own."

"Huh," Lance thought aloud, "they kind of remind me of dolphins. Big, creepy, monster dolphins."

"I guess you could say they're similar," Keith responded with a shrug, "just don't piss these guys off, then they'll really get scary."

Lance gulped. "And what's it take to piss them off?"

Keith chuckled once more at the other boy's obvious nervousness. "Don't worry, you'd have to intentionally hurt someone they trust for them to turn on you. They're extremely protective, and if anything tries to hurt you they'll defend you with their lives."

"That's pretty cool," Lance had to admit, worries washing away as they finally reached the pack. The group was making a racket of clicking noises in what seemed to be excitement. When Lance looked closely he could see their eyes had gone from small circular orbs to arches, like a person's would when closed in happiness.

The two spent the rest of the evening hanging out with the nahalluds. The pack began to dance at one point, which Lance eagerly joined in. He tried to get Keith to join as well, but to no avail.

In the end, Keith made a campfire that they all sat around as Keith and Lance shared ghost stories, although Lance couldn't understand what a 'teligma' or a 'forifus' was, but it was fun nonetheless. Whether the nahalluds could understand them or not Lance still wasn't sure, but they at least seemed to enjoy listening to the two talk.

Finally, Lance was beginning to fall asleep, leaning on Keith's shoulder as he drifted off when he felt the other move. Before he knew it, Keith was picking him up with a small grunt, and carrying him, presumably, back towards the mansion. Lance was exhausted, deciding he'd much rather be carried than have to walk all the way back, and so he let his head rest on Keith's shoulder as he drifted off to sleep.


	8. Interlopers

Keith was hiding something, of that Shiro was sure. And he was determined to find out what.

That was why he had invited Hunk and Pidge to go visit his brother with him. He wanted an extra set of eyes or two, to not only make sure he didn't miss anything, but to make sure his worries were warranted as well and not just the result of paranoia and lack of sleep.

"So what are we looking for, exactly?" Pidge asked once everyone had gathered.

"Anything out of the ordinary," Shiro replied, "there's no detail too small."

This time Hunk spoke up. "So tell us why again you think Keith has something to do with this?"

Pidge responded first, "because he was watching Lance like a hawk the night he disappeared. Not to mention he apparently left early. Just after Lance went outside to get some fresh air. Just before he disappeared."

"I don't think Keith took him, but I do believe he knows something he's not telling us," Shiro declared, "when I last visited him he was acting kinda… strange. Like he couldn't wait for me to leave. He's never acted like that before, he's always been happy to see me… And there was something else, but I'm not sure it means anything," he said in thought.

"What was it? No detail too small, remember?" Hunk pointed out with a reassuring smile.

That made Shiro's mouth twitch up into a small smile in response. "Right. Well in front of his house he has a garden but everything in it's always dead. But last time there was one rose in full bloom."

"Lance does have the power to bring plants back to life, no matter how long they've been dead," Pidge commented.

"But that would mean that Lance had been there. And you said you don't think Keith would kidnap Lance, right?"

Shiro nodded. "Not without good reason, no. Keith can be a little socially awkward, but he's not a bad person."

"Well, we're not going to get any answers by standing around talking," Pidge declared, "so let's go already!"

The rest of the crew nodded in agreement and began to head out.

* * *

Keith was busy reading a book when he heard the doorbell ring. He glanced over at Lance, who was laying on his back reading a comic book Ulaz had picked up for him, to see him looking back expectantly.

Keith sighed and got up before heading to the door to find Ulaz standing there, about to open it himself. Upon seeing Keith he leaned down and whispered, "it's Shiro, along with two teenagers."

Keith pursed his lips. "Don't let them in just yet," he ordered before heading back to Lance. "You need to hide. Now."

"What?" Lance demanded, sitting up, "why?"

"Because I can't risk anyone finding you here."

Lance groaned. "You know I get you're going for the whole "mysterious" vibe and everything, but being kept out of the loop is really starting to get annoying."

Keith didn't seem to appreciate his humor. "Lance, this is serious."

"So you've said. Fine, fine, I'll hide," he grumbled.

Keith kneeled down so he was at eye level with Lance, his gaze hardening. "Do you trust me?"

Lance stared back at Keith as he contemplated the question. Looking hard enough, he could see pleading in Keith's eyes, it almost made him look... vulnerable.

He thought the question over. Did he trust Keith? Honestly, he wasn't sure. He always thought the best way to earn trust was to give trust, and Keith had never trusted him enough to tell him why he was brought here.

But then again, he had been treated well. He was treated as a guest, not a prisoner. Keith hadn't given Lance a reason to distrust him either.

Finally he spoke up. "For now."

Keith nodded. "I promise you that I'm keeping you here for a good reason. And that's why I need you to stay hidden, no matter who it is. Now, come with me." Keith stood up, reaching out a hand to help Lance up as well, which he accepted.

"Where are we going?" Lance asked.

Keith gave a small smirk. "It wouldn't be a mansion without a secret passageway or two."

* * *

Keith finally answered the door after the third knock. Before him stood Shiro, along with the two teenagers Ulaz had mentioned. He recognized the one with the glasses from the night of the party.

"Sorry for the wait," he said, "big house."

"Don't worry about it," Shiro responded cheerfully, "I hope you don't mind the intrusion. This is Hunk and Pidge, they're friends of mine." He gestured to each of them in turn. "I mentioned you had a mansion and these two were dying to come see it."

Keith studied Shiro for a moment. His smile seemed forced. Then again, the man never had been good at lying.

Keith had a bad feeling in his gut, but decided to go along with it. "It's no problem. It's nice to meet you two."

"The pleasure's all mine," Hunk said with a genuine smile, holding his hand out for Keith to shake, which he accepted out of courtesy.

"So," Shiro spoke once Keith stepped aside to let them in, "I noticed you had a flower blooming in your garden. How'd you get that to happen?"

Keith frowned. Lying and being subtle had never been Shiro's strong points. It was obvious he was onto Keith.

Pidge noted how Keith rubbed his arm as he spoke. "I bought it. I'm actually surprised it's lived this long."

He continued to chat with the group, answering their questions as he gave them the tour. Yes, every guest room had a connected bathroom, yes he had his own personal chef, no, his recreation room didn't have any TVs; and so on and so forth.

Finally, the tour came to an end, much to Keith's relief. He was fine with talking to one person at a time, but entertaining a small group left him exhausted.

"Alright, well it's getting late, we should be heading back now. Thanks for giving them the tour!" Keith had never been so glad to hear those words.

Keith quickly bid them goodbye, and as soon as they were gone, he went to find Lance to let him know it was safe to come out from hiding. When he did, he was met with a saddened expression that made his heart sink.

"That was Hunk and Pidge, wasn't it?"

Keith swallowed. As he suspected, they were indeed friends of Lance.

He gave a small nod. "Yeah."

Lance didn't say anything else as he pushed past Keith, eyes cast upon the ground.

* * *

"So what do you guys think?" Shiro asked.

Pidge was the one that spoke up, a stern frown etched onto their face. "I think you're right. He's definitely hiding something."


	9. Betrayal

Keith, Lance had discovered, had never watched a movie in his life. Lance was determined to fix that.

"Keith!" Lance called out as he wandered the mansion, "Keith, where are you!?"

Finally he peeked into the library and found him, sitting in a chair reading a book. "Hey, Keith, I was calling for you!"

"I heard," Keith responded, not bothering to look up from his book.

"Then why didn't you say something?" He demanded.

"I was busy reading," the other replied, casting his gaze up to send Lance an unamused glare.

"Well put your book down and go run your little butt to the human world, I'm gonna show you the greatest invention of all time."

* * *

After much bickering, Lance finally convinced Keith to go out and buy a portable DVD player, the entire Star Wars series, and a bag of popcorn. He had wanted some pizza as well, but apparently Keith was lactose intolerant and wouldn't be able to have any.

"Meet me in the billiards room," he had said and dashed off towards the guest rooms.

He returned ten minutes later, arms overflowing with blankets and pillows that he proudly dumped on the floor.

Keith took one look at the pile and sighed. "Why did you take all the blankets from my spare bedrooms?"

"Because," Lance announced, "we're going to make the best blanket fort ever!"

"A blanket fort?" Keith questioned, raising an eyebrow, "aren't those for little kids?" 

Lance gasped in offense. "Of course not! You're never too old for blanket forts! Now, help me move these pool tables!"

Keith resigned to his fate with a sigh and began to help Lance rearrange the furniture. Before long, they had tipped over pool tables on 3 sides of an area with blankets covering the top and 4th side. The inside had a blanket spread across the floor and was covered in pillows. Red, of course being the feline she was, was the first one to enter, taking up a good portion of the left side.

"There we go, now we can start the movie!" Lance declared, reaching for the bag of popcorn as he laid down, still keeping his distance from the lion.

Keith rolled his eyes but couldn't suppress a smile as he crawled in after Lance and got himself settled between the two.

And with that, their movie night began.

About half an hour in Keith's mind began to wander to the boy next to him. What was it about him that made Keith like him so much?

Well, that was easy. Lance brought a warmth and liveliness that Keith's home had never seen. He brightened up the place. He was funny and had a laugh that was contagious. His smile shone bold enough to lighten up the night. And most importantly, he actually seemed to care about Keith.

And Keith cared about him too. More and more each day, it seemed.

Again he was hit by thoughts of Lance abandoning him as soon as he's able to leave, but Keith quickly pushed those thoughts aside. He had decided to put his trust in Lance.

He glanced over at the boy lying next to him, focused intensely on the movie playing on the small screen, concentration only being interrupted to occasionally reach for another handful of popcorn.

Keith felt a warm flutter in his stomach and suddenly it all made sense why he cared so much about this boy. He liked Lance.

It wasn't love, no, not quite yet. But he couldn't deny the beginnings of some fond feelings starting to blossom within him.

It wasn't so much of a shocking sensation like his books had always described it to be, but more of a warm understanding feeling that spread through him. It was warm and fuzzy and brought a small smile to Keith's lips.

The sound of the door knocker echoing throughout the mansion jolted Keith from his thoughts. "I have to get this," he muttered ruefully, standing up and crawling out of the blanket fort.

"You expecting someone?" Lance asked, glancing away from the screen to watch Keith get up.

"Yeah."

"What about the movie?" The taller god asked with a frown.

Keith paused in the doorway to look back at Lance. "We can finish it another time," he promised. Truth be told, as much as Keith had been enjoying the movie, he hadn't been paying attention for the past ten or so minutes, too wrapped up in his thoughts.

Lance gave a pout as Keith closed the door behind him, leaving him alone once more.

The god of spring pressed the pause button on the DVD player and rolled onto his back, still making sure to keep his distance from Red as he wondered what he should do now. Keith hadn't told him to stay there, and he was curious who his mystery visitor could be.

Finally, he decided to check it out. Keith would have told him if he couldn't follow, right?

Lance scrambled to his knees, crawling out from their fort before making his way around a bunch of spare pillows to the door. He quietly opened it and snuck down the hall to see Keith talking in a hushed voice to a Galra. This one was a darker purple than Ulaz, with two fluffy tufts of hair sticking up like ears, burly sideburns, and a beard. Lance recognized him as one of the Galra that hung around Zarkon, the god of destruction and leader of the Galra, fairly often.

"What's Keith doing with one of Zarkon's men…?" He wondered aloud, being sure to keep his voice to a whisper.

The two were talking in hushed voices so Lance couldn't make out much of the conversation, but there was one thing Lance was sure he heard. The Galra were planning some sort of attack on the humans.

And just like that, all of his doubt began to surface. What did he really know about Keith, anyways? Just that he had kidnapped Lance and refused to tell him why. That he had made him hide even from his best friends. From Keith's own brother, the god of justice himself. Everything was too suspicious.

He couldn't take it anymore.

And with that in mind, there was one thing Lance decided. Keith couldn't be trusted.

And so he turned, and he ran.

* * *

"You're sure you saw him take the boy?" A deep raspy voice demanded, purple eyes almost glowing in the dim light.

"Yes, the night of the party. He was with another Galra," said another voice as it bowed before the first.

The first voice hummed in thought. "Prorok," it addressed the third party in the room, that lay kneeling next to the other one, "I think it's time you pay Keith a visit."

"Yes, Lord Zarkon."


	10. Minus One

Keith had been searching for hours. After he had met with Thace he had gone back to the recreation room - he refused to call it the billiards room no matter how many pool tables were in it - to hopefully finish the movie he had been watching with Lance. But as he crawled back into the blanket fort, he found it empty save for a sleeping Red, and still had yet to find the fellow god even after scouring every inch of the mansion, courtyard, and even the stables with Ulaz's help. However Lance was nowhere to be found.

Lance was gone.

Keith was currently searching the mansion for what had to be the third time, just in case, when he heard the door knocker for the second time that day. He muttered to himself as he reluctantly went to answer it, grumbling about not having time for visitors. Ulaz was already waiting in the grand foyer for him, a frown etched into his face.

Upon opening the door he was surprised to find one of Zarkon's men, Prorok, standing there. He instantly was on guard, not trusting the Galra. "What do you want?" He demanded, not having time for niceties.

"So cold. What kind of greeting is that?" Prorok replied with a smirk. "By the way, you really need to teach your guard dogs to heel."

"I'm busy," Keith hissed in response.

"Oh? Well then, I'll make this quick. I know you have the boy."

Instantly, Keith's blood ran cold. "I don't know what you're talking about," he faked.

"Is that so?" Prorok hummed to himself before reaching down and plucking a single rose in full bloom. "That's funny. It looks as though Spring has been here."

"I bought it," Keith lied once more.

Prorok simply gave a shrug and tossed the flower over his shoulder as he pushed past Keith to let himself into the mansion.

"I'm also a busy man, so I'll cut straight to the chase," the Galra proclaimed, a cheshire grin spreading across his face, "Sendak saw you kidnap the god of spring."

Keith tensed, pausing to search for the right words, knowing it was no use to continue to deny it. "What is it that you want?" He demanded.

"We want the boy."

"We?" Ulaz finally spoke up, "you mean you and Zarkon?"

"Correct."

Keith narrowed his eyes. "And what do you want with him?" He already knew the answer to that question, but decided to play along.

"Why, simply to return him to his family, of course," Prorok replied, his voice full of false honey.

"Don't lie to me," Keith glared in response, "Zarkon's never cared about anyone but himself." He was walking a thin line, and he knew it, but at the moment he was too infuriated to care.

"Why ask if you're not even going to believe me?" Prorok gave a sigh. "Kids these days. No trust at all."

"Well either way, he's not here." Keith said, an idea forming in his head. The statement made Prorok turn and raise an eyebrow at the other god. "Feel free to search the place, but like I said, I don't have him."

Prorok narrowed his eyes. "I think I'll take you up on that offer."

They spent the next half an hour wandering the house, Prorok checking every single room, even going so far as to check the closets, all while grumbling to himself.

"Are you satisfied?" Ulaz asked as they closed the door to the last of the rooms.

Prorok turned to Keith, a scowl etched onto his face. "I may not know where the boy is, but I know for a fact that you're hiding him somewhere." A grin began to spread across his face. "But perhaps your buddy Thace may know?"

Keith's blood ran cold once more. "I don't know what-"

"Oh please," Prorok cut him off, "no more of that nonsense. You and I both know who Thace really works for. Don't think Haggar can't smell a rat a mile away."

Keith narrowed his eyes, weighing his options before reluctantly speaking up once more. "Well like I said, Lance isn't here. Now if you'd please excuse yourself, I'm extremely busy."

Prorok practically growled in response but didn't say anything more as he let himself out, making sure the door slammed behind him.

"Ulaz," Keith said, turning to his friend, "we can't let him go back."

"I understand." Ulaz gave a half bow before following after Prorok.

Prorok gave the fellow Galra a dirty look as he approached, to which Ulaz returned with a smile, explaining "allow me to see you to the gates. The guard dogs aren't exactly the friendliest around strangers."

"I'll say," Prorok huffed, seeming to buy the excuse.

The two walked in utter silence until they reached the gate. Cerberus and Orthrus snarled at Prorok, drool dripping from each of their heads, almost as if they could sense their impending meal.

Ulaz gave a low whistle and instantly the dogs lunged.

Prorok, seeming to quickly grasp what was happening, whirled on Ulaz, pulling a knife out of a hidden pocket and lodging it in Ulaz's chest as the Galra let out a cry of pain before collapsing.

Before Prorok could do any more damage, Cerberus's middle head swooped down and snatched him up, swallowing him in a single bite.

As soon as the threat was gone, the two dogs sat down and began to howl.

The howls of all five heads could be heard back at the mansion, and Keith knew, he had lost a friend.

 **I'm sorry this is so short, I miscounted the number of pages as I was writing it and now it's too late to add anything else. I promise the next couple of chapters will be longer to make up for it**


	11. Flatline

Lance was lost.

After he had left the mansion he tried to run in the direction Keith had taken him to see the Styx, hoping to somehow find a way to bribe the ferryman, but before he knew it he couldn't tell where he was. He had tried retracing his steps only the wind up even more lost. Lance had no clue how Keith managed to navigate so easily.

He sat down against a tree with a thump, wrapping his arms around his knees. It had been days since he had run off, and he was exhausted and dying of hunger. No doubt Keith was searching for him, but he still wasn't sure whether or not he actually wanted to be found. He just wanted to go home. He wanted to see his mom's bright smile, get wrapped up in one of Hunk's warm hugs, and even be the subject of Pidge's teasing once more. He wanted to see flowers in full bloom, to feel the sun on his face, the breeze in his hair, and the rain on his skin. He'd never been so homesick before.

He had just buried his face in his knees when he heard a growl sound from a set of bushes off to his right. He quickly looked up to see a pair of glowing yellow eyes that didn't look friendly in the least bit. Faster than he could think, he scrambled to his feet and continued to run. This is what it had been like for the past several days.

He ran as far as his legs could carry him, which wasn't far considering how weak he had become but still hopefully far enough, until he collapsed to his hands and knees next to a tree, soon after falling onto his side and rolling onto his back to catch his breath.

As he panted heavily, Lance stared up at the light filtering through the leaves down onto his face. That was one of the few benefits of it always being cloudy in the Underworld he supposed; the sun couldn't hurt your eyes.

As Lance's breathing began to calm, he noticed something hanging from the tree. He suspected it to be some sort of fruit. Lance got up and stood on his toes, just barely being able to reach the object and pluck it from the branch.

As he looked it over, he recognized it as a pomegranate. What was a pomegranate tree doing in the Underworld? From what he'd seen Keith eat, food from the Underworld looked vastly different from that of his world.

Just then his stomach decided to growl at him, reminding him just how hungry he was after having gone days without eating. How long had it even been since he last ate? He'd lost track.

Lance could still remember Ulaz's warning about food of the Underworld. If he ate it, he'd be stuck there forever. But if he didn't…

As the thought crossed him so did another hunger pain, giving him a harsh reminder of just what the consequences of refusing to eat when given the chance could be.

Lance carefully weighed his options. Although the pomegranate wasn't much, it was still something for his empty stomach. And if he hadn't found the Styx yet it was unlikely he would do so anytime soon. The same could be said for Keith coming to find him. Who knew how much longer he'd be out here for? Getting trapped in the underworld versus dying slowly of starvation, in the end it was an easy choice.

Besides, pomegranates were food from his world, not food of the Underworld, right? Surely he wouldn't get trapped from eating one.

With his mind set, Lance managed to split the pomegranate open using his teeth to rip the peel, and began to eat.

The effect wasn't immediate, but it was fast. He had gotten about halfway through the pomegranate before his throat began to burn. Slowly, the sensation grew unbearable, as if his entire throat was on fire. Then, that's when he felt it. A sudden pain, different from the hunger pains he had been feeling, and more intense.

It rippled through him like a wave, and he paused in his eating to place a hand over his stomach in confusion. Then he felt it again. Even stronger this time. Much stronger. It was a pain unlike anything he had ever felt before, much worse than anything he had ever experienced in his life. And it burned, as if someone had shoved hot coals down his throat into his stomach.

The pomegranate dropped to the ground as he doubled over, clutching his stomach in pain, and began to scream.

* * *

Keith had been searching for Lance for days on end, hardly even stopping to eat or sleep. After giving Ulaz a proper burial, he had brought Orthrus with him to see if he could try to sniff him out. Unfortunately, the two-headed dog seemed to get distracted by every little thing, so in the end he wasn't much help.

"Lance!" Keith called out for what felt like the millionth time, "where are you!?"

Just then, Orthrus seemed to hear something, both heads swivelling in the direction of the noise. Before Keith could stop him, he was taking off through the forest.

Keith quickly ran after the dog, calling it's name and muttering a curse under his breath.

That's when Keith heard it. A scream. Lance's scream. And just like that, Keith was pushing his legs harder to chase after the dog through the brush towards the sound.

Finally, they reached the boy, who was hunched over in pain, tears welling in his eyes. Keith was at his side in an instant.

"What happened!?" He demanded before his gaze wandered to the pomegranate that laid on the ground in front of them. "You ate the pomegranate!? You idiot, those things are poisonous! I thought I told you not to eat anything unless Ulaz or I gave it to you!" He hissed, more in fear for the boy than actual anger.

"I didn't know!" Lance defended himself, wheezing in pain, "I was so hungry… and I figured… pomegranates are from my world! I didn't… think they counted!" Just then he heaved and vomited on the ground in front of him, a trickle of blood staining the side of his mouth.

"Quiznak!" Keith cursed, before quickly scooping the boy up in his arms. "Just… hold on! I'll get you some help!" And with that, he began to run, Orthrus on his trail.

He ran as fast as his legs could carry them, trying to reach the gates to the human world, but they were fairly far and Keith wasn't even sure where to go once they got out.

"Keith… Can I ask you something?"

"What?"

"Why are you trying to save me?"

Keith furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, wanting to look down at Lance but instead keeping his eyes forward to see where he was running. "Why wouldn't I try to save you? You're my friend!"

Lance was silent for several moments before he spoke up again. "I thought you were with Zarkon…? You were with one of his men."

"Is that why you ran away?" Keith hissed angrily, making Lance flinch in his arms. "You're such a moron... " He let out a sigh, though it was lost in his heavy breathing. "Thace isn't with Zarkon. He's with me. We've been trying to protect you."

Although Lance was curious as to what Keith meant by that, he was much too tired to give more than a quiet "hm" in response.

"You doing okay?" Keith asked in concern, trying to push himself to run faster only to stumble a little bit.

"Not really," Lance murmured, his voice quiet, "everything's numb."

Keith bit his lip. "Just hang in there, Lance, I'm gonna get you some help as soon as we get to Earth. Just stay with me."

Lance gave a tiny sigh, not having the energy to give a response, and certain it wasn't one Keith would even want to hear. Regardless, the both of them already knew the truth. Lance wasn't going to make it.

The lack of response caused Keith to bite down harder until he tasted blood. He couldn't help but blame himself for the entire situation. He knew there wasn't much he could have done, but there was no stopping the nagging sensation that it was his fault Lance had run off. Maybe he should have been more adamant about warning Lance about the food, or kept his meeting with Thace a secret. There must have been something he could have done differently. Then maybe Lance wouldn't be dying in his arms.

Finally, he managed to reach the portal back to Earth. He paused in his running and glanced down at the god of Spring. His eyes were closed and his breathing had stopped.

"Hey… Lance, wake up…" His plea was met with a deafening silence. He tried shaking the boy despite knowing it was futile. "Please Lance… I've already lost one person who was important to me… I don't want to lose another…" Tears began to stream down his face as he fell to his knees, resting his head against Lance's. "Please don't go…" He cried, already knowing that nothing he said or did would bring him back. It was too late. Spring was gone.


	12. Soul Searching

When Shiro heard a knock at his front door that evening, Keith was the last person he expected to see.

The god of justice looked him over. The boy was covered in dirt and scratches, had heavy bags under his eyes, and a tear stained face. But that wasn't what caught his attention. He was carrying Lance. And from what he could tell the boy wasn't moving.

"Shiro," Keith choked out a sob, "I messed up."

"What-... is Lance okay? What happened?" The older brother demanded, panic quickly coursing through him.

Keith shook his head. "He's dead. I… This is all my fault."

Shiro bit his lip, trying his best to keep his composure as he moved aside to let Keith in. "Start from the beginning. Tell me everything that happened."

* * *

The two brothers sat in silence as Keith finished telling his story. Keith's voice had been shaking the whole time he told his tale. Whether it was from grief of losing his only two friends or fear of Shiro getting angry at him for what he had done, the older brother wasn't sure. Perhaps a mixture of both.

"I was just trying to protect him…" Keith reiterated for what felt to be the hundredth time, his head in his hands.

Shiro let out a sigh. "This is a lot to take in. I really wish you had told me sooner-"

"I told you I couldn't!" Keith interrupted, voice muffled slightly by his hands.

Shiro raised a hand to signal he wasn't finished speaking. "But I understand why you didn't. You did the right thing, Keith."

The younger boy lifted his head to stare sadly at Shiro. "How could it have been the right thing to do if it ended up getting Lance killed?"

"There's no way you could have known how Lance would react. Besides," Shiro gave Keith a reassuring smile, "there may be a way to get him back."

Keith's eyes widened in surprise. Could it really be true? There was a way to bring Lance back from the dead? "What are you talking about?"

"Remember that old scepter I gave you way back when you started ruling the Underworld?" He waited as a look of confusion followed by recognition flickered across Keith's face. "Do you still have it?"

"Yeah," Keith confirmed, still looking slightly confused, "I think I shoved it in the back of my closet."

Shiro would have chuckled at the thought of Keith tossing such a powerful item in a closet if the situation hadn't been so dire. "That scepter has enough power to bring a single person back from the dead."

"Why didn't you tell me sooner!?" Keith demanded, standing up from where he sat.

"Because I didn't want you to waste it on just anyone," the older brother explained, "you were just starting out the new job and I didn't want you to use it on the first person you took pity on. I wanted you to save it in case something such as this ever happened."

"How do I do use it?"

Shiro had planned on making sure Keith was certain of the person he was going to use it on, but one look at the determination in his brother's eyes told him he knew the answer. Lance was important to Keith. They may not have been together for more than a couple weeks, but already Lance had grown on him, to the point where Keith hadn't even considered using the scepter on Ulaz, despite being his oldest friend. And Shiro knew then, that Lance was much more than just a friend to Keith. He filled a hole in his life that Ulaz had never been able to fill.

Shiro gave his half-brother a knowing smile. "I'm proud of you," he murmured more to himself than to Keith. The fellow god gave him a confused look, which Shiro waved off with a flick of his hand. "It's nothing. To use the scepter you have to have both the person's body and soul."

"His soul…?" Keith repeated, looking dejected. "There's no way we'd be able to get his soul back from Heaven."

"You shouldn't have to. You said he ate a pomegranate, right?" Shiro pointed out, "then he ate food of the Underworld. His soul should be bound to it now. So he can't reach Heaven and didn't lead a bad enough life to cross the Styx. In that case, he should have become a wandering spirit. All you have to do now is find him."

* * *

Lance awoke with a groan. Slowly, he raised himself into a sitting position and took in his surroundings.

Gray skies, dull trees, cries of the damned off in the distance, he was definitely still in the Underworld. But how did he end up there? Last thing he remembered was Keith carrying him as he ran towards the exit as he was dying, and then, nothingness. Just a sea of black.

However, now he felt fine. The intense pain and the numbness from before seemed to have vanished.

Lance moved to stand up, but froze when he realized that something was wrong. Much more than he had though.

Slowly, he raised a hand in front of his eyes and waved. He was see-through.

That's when everything clicked. No more pain, no more hunger, and being partially invisible? He hadn't survived the poisoning. He was dead.

The realization was accompanied by a wave of grief as he realized everything he loved was now gone forever. His family, his friends, even the world he grew up in; he'd never see any of them again.

He wanted to cry, but no tears would come. Perhaps ghosts couldn't cry. Either way, it made him feel even worse, not having a way to let out his sorrows.

Eventually, he laid back down. He felt lost. He had no idea what to do. What purpose did a dead person even have? Was he just doomed to be stuck out in the middle of nowhere for the rest of eternity?

Then, he heard a voice. Far away, but easily recognizable. It was Keith's voice.

"Lance!" It called out, echoing through the area.

Lance sat up and scrambled to his feet. "Keith!" He shouted back, never having been so happy to hear the other boy as he began to run in the direction of the voice, "Keith! I'm over here!"

He pushed himself to run as fast as he could, and at one point, he nearly crashed into a tree only to phase right through it. After that, he stopped dodging them, instead choosing to just run straight through everything in his path.

Before he knew it, in front of him stood none other than the god of the Underworld himself, along with Red by his side. Keith stared in shock as Lance came to a quick halt in front of him.

"Keith, what's going on?" He instantly demanded, not even sparing time for a greeting, "I'm dead, aren't I?"

Keith pursed his lips and glanced away, looking for all the world like Lance was about to lash out at him. "Yeah… I'm sorry." He quickly looked back up to Lance, a spark in his eyes. "But I know how to get you back. Follow me."

Lance stood there in stunned silence for a moment before he snapped out of his stupor and began to follow alongside Keith and the lion.

"You can bring people back from the dead?" He questioned.

"Only once," Keith explained, "but yes, it's possible."

"And you're willing to use that one time on me…?"

Keith glanced at Lance from the corner of his eye as they walked. "Of course. You're… you're my friend." Something about the way Keith said it sounded strange. Almost a little sad. But Lance decided to brush it off. Who wouldn't be sad after their friend died? Even if it was possible to get them back.

A moment of silence passed between the two before Lance spoke up once more. "You said you were just trying to protect me…"

"You remember that?"

"Yeah. I'm sorry I doubted you." Lance replied, biting his lip in embarrassment.

Keith gave a sigh. "Don't worry about it. It's my fault for keeping everything a secret from you."

Lance looked over at Keith, a small almost playful smile on his lips, "But you said you have your reasons, right?"

"I did. But it's pointless now." Lance raised an eyebrow at the other boy, urging him to explain. "First let's get you fixed up. Then I'll explain everything."


	13. Reasons

Finally Keith and Lance made their way back to the mansion, where Shiro stood waiting for them with open arms. Lance had never been so happy before to see the man in his life. Or… in his death, he supposed.

He tried to give the man a hug as he ran up, only to pass right through him. He turned and gave the man a sheepish grin. "Whoops. Forgot about that. It's good to see you, Shiro."

Shiro gave him a warm smile in response. "You too, Lance. I'd say I was glad you're okay, but I guess that's not exactly the case, huh?"

"True," Lance agreed, "but Keith said there was a way to fix this."

"There is," Shiro confirmed, "we just need to get you to your body. It's inside."

Lance nodded as Keith pushed the large doors open that led into the grand foyer, holding it open for the other two to follow. He led them upstairs to the bedroom Lance had been sleeping in. As they entered the room, his eyes fell upon his own body, lying peacefully upon the bed, arms laid upon his stomach. It was a strange sight, seeing your own dead body. It looked as if it were merely sleeping.

Lance's eyes lingered for a moment longer before he turned to Keith. "Just tell me what I need to do."

"Just sit on the bed and make sure you're touching your body," Keith explained as he reached for some sort of scepter Lance only just noticed leaning against the wall. It was rather plain, being long and black with a simple U shape at the top. Definitely not something Lance would expect to hold any sort of power.

He did as he was told, climbing on the bed, surprised to find it held him - perhaps it was a matter of will, something he mildly wished he had more time to explore - and laying down in the same position his body lay. "Is this good enough?" He asked.

"Perfect," Keith replied as he approached the bed. Red followed close behind him, resting her chin on the edge.

Keith lowered his scepter so the tip lay on Lance's body and began murmuring to himself something Lance couldn't understand. From what he could tell it sounded like Latin.

Before he knew what was happening, his body was enveloped in a white light that blinded him, forcing him to close his eyes.

The chant was short, and eventually Keith's incantation stopped and the light faded as Lance peeked open an eye.

And suddenly he felt like shit.

There were still traces of numbness he could feel down to his toes, and the lingering sensation of a burning throat along with an awful stomach ache, but thankfully, nothing nearly as severe as before.

"Did it work?" He heard Keith ask.

Lance let out a groan in response as he tried to sit up, quickly being aided by Shiro. "Pretty sure it did. I feel like I got run over by a chariot."

"But at least you're alive," Shiro pointed out. And it was true. Despite how horrible he felt, he had never been so glad to be breathing.

"But we still have a problem," Keith said with a frown, "you ate food of the Underworld. The fact that you became a wandering spirit is proof your soul is now bound to this world."

Lance felt his heart sink to his stomach. "So I'm stuck here forever?..." Would he seriously never see his home again? His friends? His family?

"Not quite," Shiro spoke up, giving Lance his signature reassuring smile, the one that always made you feel like everything would turn out alright, "it's true you'll have to live here for most of your life, but you can still visit Earth."

"You just can't stay for more than three months or it'll start wearing you down and you'd eventually die... again… And it takes about nine months to recover once you get back."

Lance let out a sigh of relief. So he'd at least be able to visit his home and the people he cared about, even if it wasn't forever. "Well there go my plans of being an astronaut," he joked, trying to lighten the mood a bit.

Keith frowned, not seeming to find it funny in the least bit. "Lance, this is serious. More than you know."

Shiro's expression seemed to mirror Keith's as he glanced at his brother. "I believe you owe him an explanation."

Lance gave an eager nod. "You said you'd tell me what was going on as soon as I was alright." Then, he cracked a smile. "I'm just dying to find out."

Keith rolled his eyes as Shiro frowned harder. Apparently neither of them were in the mood for his jokes.

"You've heard the rumors about the Galra planning to rebel, right?" Keith asked.

Lance's grin instantly dropped. "Who hasn't? Everyone's saying the Galra are planning on enslaving humans. Something about them growing too advanced and needing to be controlled. To me it just sounds like Zarkon just wants world domination."

Keith nodded. "You're half right. The Galra are planning something, but it's not enslavement."

"Then… what is it?"

Shiro took a deep breath as he spoke up. "If Keith's sources are correct-"

"They are," Keith assured, interrupting his brother.

"Then Zarkon's planning on wiping out humans altogether."

Lance's eyes widened in shock. "What!?" He turned to Keith. "Are you sure!?"

Keith gave a solemn nod. "Yeah. There's an organization of Galra that are against Zarkon called the Blade of Marmora. Remember that Galra you saw me meeting up with? He's one of them. His name is Thace. He's close with Sendak, Zarkon's right hand man, and whatever he hears he tells directly to me and the other members."

Then, Lance put two and two together. "Is that why you couldn't tell anyone? Because it would put Thace in danger?"

"Exactly," Keith replied, pursing his lips, "The Blade of Marmora revolves around trust, and I couldn't be sure whether or not you'd tell someone, whether you meant to or not, if you were found. If word got out we knew what they were really planning they'd know there was a spy and weed him out." Lance noticed Keith's hands ball into fists at his side. "But apparently they already know. I got a visit from Prorok when you were missing, he was the one that told me." He paused to glare at the ground, a spark of anger flickering in his dark eyes. "The bastard killed Ulaz."

Lance's jaw almost dropped. "Ulaz is dead!?" He grit his teeth as he felt a single tear flow down his cheek. He hadn't known Ulaz that long, but he had been kind to Lance the entire time he was here. Ulaz was a good person. He didn't deserve to die.

Keith gave a tiny nod. "But there's no way Cerberus would have let Prorok get away. I'm pretty sure he got what was coming to him."

A moment of silence for their fallen friend passed over the group.

Finally, Lance spoke up once more. "But what does this all have to do with me?" 

This time, it was Shiro who answered. "Zarkon's plan to kill humans is to get rid of spring summer and fall. He wants to create an eternal winter all across the world that most of them won't be able to survive." A grave expression crossed Shiro's face. "And that plan starts by killing you."


	14. Reunion

It was a strange feeling, knowing someone was after your life. Like an invisible hand was wrapped around your throat, not quite squeezing, not just yet, but ready to do so at any given moment.

Still, Lance tried his best to ignore the sensation and focus on the present. Shiro had taken the liberty of personally bringing Lance's family, along with Hunk and Pidge to come visit what he supposed was his new home. When Demeter found out Keith was the one who had taken Lance she had been about 5 seconds away from pummeling him, but thankfully things were hastily sorted out before any violence could occur. Regardless, Keith kept his distance from her after that, looking for all the world like a puppy that had gotten caught chewing the furniture, especially as she still sent the occasional glare in his direction. Even Lance had to feel a bit bad for the guy after all he had done to try and help.

Pidge had originally given a similar reaction, complete with a death threat or two, until they had finished explaining what was going on. After that, they seemed to settle down, giving a half-hearted 'thanks' to Keith for keeping their friend safe.

Hunk and most of Lance's siblings had responded in opposite, sitting and patiently listening to the entire story before giving Keith a warm smile, and in Hunk's case a bone-crushing hug, as they gave him their appreciation.

Keith, however, seemed to feel slightly awkward in the spotlight, rubbing his arm as he stood off to the side of the room, away from the crowd, but as Lance's siblings fawned over their brother, Lance could have sworn he caught Keith watching for a moment, a brief smile on his lips.

It wasn't long before the two youngest siblings, Miguel and Daniela, got distracted by Red. She seemed hesitant to pay them any attention at first, but that soon changed as they brought out some cat toys. As it turned out, the lion was rather friendly once she decided you were worth her time, and rolled around on a sack of catnip like an oversized house cat.

Lance's remaining two sisters, Jacqueline, who was older than Lance by three years, and Liliana, younger by two, had taken a seat on the bed next to Lance, along with his mother who refused to leave her son's side. They were in the middle of chatting politely with Shiro when Keith spoke up.

"So what's our next move?" He asked from where he stood by the wall, looking mainly at Shiro.

"Well once Lance is feeling better we should go to the council and see what they have to say about all of this," Shiro replied as he turned to look at his brother.

Keith nodded in acceptance as he glanced at Lance. "I'll… wait outside." And with that, he left.

Lance felt a pang of guilt stab through his chest, especially as he noticed Shiro looking at him as subtly as possible. "I'm gonna go talk to him," he decided as he slowly stood up to follow, his mother and siblings leaping to help him.

He finally stumbled to the door, and pushed past it, earning a surprised glance from Keith before the boy continued to look straight ahead, arms crossed. "Are you sure you're okay to be up so soon?"

"I'll be fine," Lance assured, "I'm more worried about you. How're you holding up?"

"I'm-…" Keith was silent for several moments, reconsidering his words before he let out a quiet sigh. "Not great. Ulaz was the closest thing I had to a friend since I was a kid. And now he's gone."

"He was a good guy," Lance concluded solemnly.

"Yeah." Lance noticed Keith's hands ball into fists. "We'll get them back for what they've done."

The taller god gave Keith a saddened look. "I've always heard revenge doesn't live up to it's expectations."

Keith seemed to deflate a little at that. "I know, but… they don't deserve to get away with it either."

Lance hummed in understanding as he leaned against the door and a comfortable silence fell over the two.

Finally, Lance spoke up. "I guess I should thank you for saving me… and apologize."

Keith turned to look at Lance, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "What do you have to apologize for?"

"Well first of all, for causing all this trouble," Lance began, "and secondly… I doubted you. You always treated me like I was a guest, not a prisoner, and you were just trying to protect me and Thace but… when I saw you with him I doubted you. I thought you were working with Zarkon and I ran and got myself killed. I should have trusted you. I'm sorry."

By then a look of sympathy had found it's way onto Keith's face. "You don't have to apologize for that. To be honest I expected you to try and run the second you got here. So thanks for trusting me as long as you did."

Lance held out a hand to Keith. "Friends?"

Keith glanced at the hand then back to Lance as he unfolded his arms, reaching his own hand out in return, a small smile overtaking his lips despite the slight ache in his heart at the word.

"Friends."

* * *

"Zarkon plans on wiping out the humans."

A quiet murmur echoed throughout the room as the council whispered to each other in hushed voices. Allura and Coran exchanged a worried glance.

Plachu sat with his arms crossed, glaring at Shiro. "How do you know this is true?" He demanded.

The rest of the council looked at the small group expectantly, awaiting an answer.

This time, Keith spoke up. "I heard this from Thace. He's been spying on the Galra for several years now."

"Thace, a spy?" Chuchule spoke, "but he's always seemed so close with the other Galra!"

Platt nodded in agreement, rubbing his chin. "It is a little hard to believe."

"Not all of the Galra agree with Zarkon," Shiro pointed out, "there's a group that's against him, called the Blade of Marmora. Thace and Keith are part of it."

Keith stepped forward from where he had been standing next to Lance. "But the Galra somehow found out Thace is a traitor. He's in danger."

"Then we must act quickly," said Chulatt from where she sat before turning her gaze to Allura, "Princess, Coran, what do you two think?"

Allura looked back at Chulatt, her gaze hardening. "I don't trust the Galra, and I don't trust Thace. This could be some sort of trap." She turned her glare towards Keith. "And Keith, your mother was Galra, was she not? How do we know we can trust your word?" And with that, all eyes in the room were on him.

Lance decided it was his turn to speak up. "If you don't trust Keith, then trust in me and Shiro. Keith took me so that he could protect me, but when I heard Thace say Zarkon was planning an attack I doubted him and I ran and got myself killed. But Keith did everything he could to save me and used his one chance to bring someone back to life on me. He's a good person." Lance noticed Keith staring at him and gave him an encouraging smile that made Keith's stomach do flips.

Coran finally decided it was his time to interject. "I've known Shiro and Lance for a long time, and if they say we can trust him, then I'll take their word for it. Besides, this is too big an issue to ignore. Even if it does turn out to be a trap, we can't take the risk of letting Zarkon wipe out humanity. I say we bring the fight to them before any damage can be done."

The council room was silent for a moment before Chulatt spoke up, her quiet voice echoing throughout the room. "I agree."

Finally, the rest of the council seemed to nod their heads in agreement.

Coran turned to the princess next to him. "Allura?"

Allura gave a weary sigh before pursing her lips. "Fine, I agree. Everyone gather your best fighters. We march at dawn."

* * *

 **This might be the last chapter for a while, sorry guys. I've been dealing with depression and still need to do some thinking about the story and where to go from here. Hopefully it shouldn't take too long.**


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